Chapter Text
Ochako stands against the wall opposite Aizawa's office, her body vibrates with uncultivated anger.
Bakugou attacked Deku in the middle of their training exercise and Deku—believing his dear friend Kacchan was testing his strength—followed suit with an earnestness that had them both destroying the gymnasium in electric green sparks and wild explosions. She’d barely had a moment to converse with her friend, her questions dying on her lips the moment they heard the scream, and watched as Bakugou promptly tackled him in a boisterous outburst of fire.
All their classmates were sent to the dorms, Cementoss was called in to assess the damage, and Aizawa (utterly infuriated) hauled the two boys wrapped in his capture scarf to his office in a huff.
In truth, she thinks this is her fault.
If she were honest, she's been punishing Bakugou by choosing not to be his training mate. It's selfish on her part, but she can't understand why she feels the need to punish him more. She's forgiven him—and they're fine—but despite her understanding of the matter (somewhat), she can't help but feel like maybe she forgave him too quickly. He had been a jerk, and her anger is valid given the explanation she gave him, but it wasn’t enough to let herself fall back into their routine, no matter how much she misses it. Let him sweat a little bit; give him a taste of his own medicine to see how he likes it.
But did he really have to go and attack him like that?!
When she grabbed Deku's arm and asked him to be her partner, she was genuine. That hadn’t been a ploy to get back at the blond (despite the timing being a little too perfect if she was even more honest). She missed him, and as her friend and colleague, she also wanted to test his strength. He'd been gone a long time, and she wondered how American hero training differed from theirs in a buzz she could still feel nipping at her heels. Perhaps she should thank Bakugou since his thirst for the fight and improving himself seeped into her pores. She's restless when she's not being challenged, and she knows Deku would've given her a good fight. That's kind of what she wants to confront him about. The blond robbed her of that, and for what? Some stupid machismo shit that made no sense?? Had he wanted to partner with Deku himself, or was he being petty because she turned him down??
Oh, was Bakugou in for it if it turns out to be the latter…
Her thoughts fizzle when the door opens, and Ochako straightens as the boys hobble out with downcast faces—Deku holding an ice pack to his swelling cheek and Bakugou holding one over his nose. Aizawa walks behind them with an annoyed expression. "And here I was hoping for an easy day. I should have known better."
"I'm so sorry, Mr. Aizawa!" Deku says with a guilty expression.
"Tch, what the fuck ever," Bakugou mutters, turning his face away when he hears his teacher growl.
"Bakugou, you are on house arrest for five days. You're to clean the dorms morning and night like last time but instead of a written apology—" The man's grin turns sinister, and Ochako feels a shiver roll down her spine. She never wants to get on his bad side. "After class, we're running drills until you can't breathe."
She watches Bakugou's jaw clench, glaring at his teacher like he wants to refute before he clicks his tongue and looks to the floor. Aizawa turns back to Deku. "Midoriya, you just got back from work studies, but that doesn't excuse the destruction of school property. You're not on house arrest, but I also expect to see you after class."
"Yes, sir," he answers with a deep bow. "I'm sorry again."
"Tch, go. I don't have—" Aizawa pauses as his eyes land on Ochako and gives her his full attention. "Ah, Uraraka, I didn't mean to ignore you there. Did you need something?"
Both her classmates look up at her, Deku with an apologetic smile, while Bakugou...looks enraged. He immobilizes her with his garnet gaze, leaving her almost breathless as they stare at one another in a silent battle, pushing and pulling at the ends of turbulence. Even with so much space between them, she feels him overwhelm her in untameable flames, licking over her body in a way that has her almost shuddering. In the distance, she hears Aizawa call her name again, but she might as well be sinking underwater—lost inside Katsuki's thundering current. He's giving her that same look he had when he apologized, but it held a hint of something she couldn't readily identify.
"Uraraka?"
She turns to Aizawa with a smile. "It's nothing! I was just waiting for—"
Katsuki storms off, barely looking back before vanishing down the end of the hall. Aizawa turns back to the remaining pair with a long sigh.
"That kid will be the death of me..." he mutters before giving them an off-hand wave and retreating to his office.
Ochako turns back to her green-haired friend with a nervous smile, running her fingers through her hair with a sigh before they break into a laugh. "Welcome back!"
"Haha, yeah! That's one way to put it," Izuku says with a shake of his head.
"Not even a full day back from the United States, and already you're causing trouble!" she giggles but hunches when she sees him hiss in pain when he attempts to join her laughter. "I'm so sorry, Deku!"
"Hey, don’t apologize!!" Izuku blushes and waves her off with a growing smile that makes him hiss again. "It's fine! I...was expecting that from Kacchan anyway."
How could one be prepared for someone to attack at random? She guesses that's just one of the strange perks of having such a history with someone like Bakugou. She never fully understood the complexities of their relationship, but it’s still something bizarre about the two. Ochako can’t help but snort. "Still think he should've waited or maybe moved faster if he wanted to claim you!"
"Yeah, but that's Kacchan, all action, and no words." He moves the ice pack and tongues the inside of his cheek. "He's gotten stronger, but geez! You could've warned me about him!"
Ochako gives him an odd look. "Warn you? I don't think I could ever warn anyone when Bakugou decides to attack."
"No, no, not about the attack. I mean that you guys are dating," Deku says while housing a surprised expression. Ochako's body stiffens. "Though oddly enough…I didn't peg him for the jealous boyfriend type."
She feels her entire world freeze for a second; the air in her lungs thinning as her face starts to redden. She can’t have heard him right. There has to be some mistake. "I-I'm sorry…but… I-I'm w-what?!?!"
Izuku flushes in embarrassment and utter confusion to her screech and wide-eyed expression. "What do you mean…." He pauses before he starts to panic. "O-Oh crap, I'm sorry for assuming! I-I just...I thought-"
"W-W-Why would you think that?! D-Deku!!! I...I-I..."
"Because he said you were his!"
Ochako feels light-headed and her knees buckle with the weight of the confession—her back hits the wall hard. Everything seems to slow at that moment as she stares at her trembling classmate, entirely thrown off her axis. What was it Deku said when they met in their first year? Paradigm shift? That's precisely what she’s feeling at this particular moment. Her heart is on fire. Nothing could ever prepare her for how that single sentence sends her on a tailspin. "H-He said-"
"Y-Yeah! When he tackled me to the ground, he told me to stay away from you and that you were his!!" Izuku hides in his arms before groaning at the pain in his cheek, pressing the ice pack back into place. "I had no idea!"
"Neither did I."
"What do you—" Deku stops talking long enough to register her gaze, and she watches the gears behind his emerald eyes start to turn before coming to a grinding halt in the realization of what he just revealed. "Oh."
Ochako says nothing—feeling her body slide to the ground—her eyes giving a faraway stare as she turns to regard the space where Bakugou disappeared. She feels weighed down by the revelation, her body humming with emotions that bring forth a cascade of images she’s not ready for—all their training sessions now taking on a whole new light. Her face feels like a hot coil, her heart rattles in her ribcage like an animal trying to break free as she replays that phrase in her head.
Yeah, oh.